LeBron: Dunk 'sweeter' because it was on Jason Terry

March 20, 2013|By Ira Winderman, South Florida Sun Sentinel

CLEVELAND — This was not accidental death-by-dunk.

No, LeBron James confirmed Wednesday that his power slam at the expense of Boston Celtics guard Jason Terry in the second quarter of Monday night's Miami Heat victory at TD Garden was very much with malice intended.

Asked after the morning shootaround at Quicken Loans Arena if he had the opportunity to review the dunk, James nodded and said, "Yeah, I have, I have."

He wasn't finished.

No, not after Terry has taken opportunities while with both the Dallas Mavericks and now Celtics to launch verbal salvos at James' Heat, including when the Mavericks defeated the Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.

"It was one of my better ones," James said. "And the fact that it happened to J.T. made it even that much sweeter. Because I think we all know what J.T. talks, and he talks too much sometimes and I'm glad it happened to him."

Asked for comment at Wednesday's Celtics shootaround in New Orleans, Terry told the media, "I'm not even commenting. No comment. Zero. I have none. A basketball play. My reaction was when the fans were cheering and I went up and knocked down the technical. That's a great reaction. Wasn't the first, won't be the last."

James received a technical foul for his stare-down of Terry after the dunk.

Shortly afterward, Terry's Wikipedia page was altered to list that he "died" on "March 18, 2013, 9:01 p.m." with the entry adding, "On March 18, 2003, Terry was killed by NBA forward LeBron James at the [TD Bank Garden]. The cause of death is being viciously dunked on."

Going into Monday's game at TD Garden, Terry wrote in the diary he is keeping for ESPN, "The question I have been asked the most lately is what do I think of the Heat's winning streak. My answer is I don't and I could care less. The reason is because whether they won or lost 20 in a row, it doesn't matter to us in this locker room."

Terry's Dallas Mavericks lost the 2006 NBA Finals to the Heat, but then defeated the Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals, the first season for the Heat's Big Three of James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. During both of those series, Terry was vocal in his disdain for the Heat.

Then, this past offseason, the Heat bypassed an opportunity to sign Terry as a free agent, instead opting to sign Ray Allen, whose spot in the Celtics' rotation is now filled by Terry.

More from Terry's diary entry leading into Monday's game in Boston, "I'm like Paul [Pierce]. He had the best quote I ever heard, 'I hope they lose every game.' If you ask me, I’m still mad about the '05-06 season. I should have two championships. Everyone knows what the Mavericks teams that I played on did when we beat them for the 2011 championship. So I don't bring it up. What I do is that I let my team know their weaknesses. I know ways to beat them. I won't share with everyone else what they are until that time comes."

The Heat hold a 2-1 lead on the Celtics in the four-game season series, with a possibility of the teams meeting as early as the first round of the playoffs.

Speaking before Wednesday's game, Cavaliers coach Byron Scott chimed in on the issue.